She's a Rebel and a Historian?
by ExtraordinarySoul
Summary: A rebellious teen rocker who secretly loves history finds herself in the biggest adventure of her life after she meets Ben Gates, Abigail Chase and Riley Poole. Takes place during the movie.
1. Chapter 1: Stowaway

This is a National Treasure fanfic that takes place during the whole movie. Except, I've stuck in the character I've created, Ivy Fairview. She may look like your average annoying sarcastic teen, but I can promise there's more to her than that. Read and enjoy!

Ivy Fairview drummed her black nail polished fingernails on the counter. This had to be the worst job she ever had taken. Well, then again, working at McDonald's might have been slightly worse. Fast food was never her thing anyway.

Ivy was 18 years old. She was quite small for her age, about 5"2. Her dark brown hair had spots and strands of blue, and she wore dark make-up quite often whenever she didn't want to be bothered. Her wardrobe was mostly reds, blues, greens and blacks. Today she was wearing a black t-shirt with a red AC/Dc symbol and a pair of black cargo pants. On the side she hung a long silver chain, which read, "Rocker Chick." She had a bracelet that read, "Rebel" in big bold medieval letters. Her earrings were a guitar in one ear and skull and crossbones in the other. To complete her outfit, a pair of red and black Converse All-Stars were tied tightly on her feet.

But the whole thing was thrown off by the hideous salesperson apron she had to wear overtop. Now she looked like a regular teenager working at a cheap drugstore.

It would strike anyone as odd to why she took the job here at the National Archives. Her parents had enrolled her in boarding school in Washington, D.C. and she ran away. Taking a huge wad of cash stolen from her father, she found a place to stay and a job. In fact, besides loving Green Day and her black electric Fender guitar, Ivy loved history.

Ivy kept all of this a secret behind her hazel eyes. When she saw the add for jobs in the newspaper at the National Archives, she was hoping to get a job as a janitor or something, so she could sneak a peek at the Declaration of Independence during work hours. But all that was left when she got there was this stupid cashier work in the gift shop. It was long and boring.

There was hardly anyone here that night. It might have been because of the 70th Anniversary Gala, which had all kinds of people gathering in fancy outfits that probably cost plenty more than her rent. Ivy absentmindedly recited the first line of the Declaration under her breath as she gazed around the store, "When in the Course of human events, it is necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have-"

Wait, what was the man over there doing? He looked conspicuous. There was something inside his tuxedo jacket…it was one of those souvenirs of the Declaration. Was he…

"Are you trying to steal that?" Ivy spoke up, catching the man's attention.

The man looked across the room at her. His cheeks flushed as he pulled out the souvenir from his jacket and held it in his hands.

"Uh…" he was obviously at a loss for words as he approached the counter.

"It's $35.00." Ivy said plainly. It was ridiculous how long she'd been working here. Now she had the prices memorized.

"That's an awful lot." He said in surprise.

"Hey, I don't make the prices." Ivy groaned.

The man opened his wallet and spilled changed on the counter as Ivy watched.

"Let's see…uh…five…twenty…thirty-two…" He didn't have enough. She could tell.

"We take Visa." Ivy offered.

The man gave a quick smile of embarrassment and took out his Visa card. Ivy took a moment to run it through and reached down to get a bag for the souvenir.

"Here you go sir, have a nice-"

But he was gone. His Visa card was still on the counter.

"Oh lord," Ivy muttered, "Why me?"

She picked up the card as well as the receipt and stuffed them in the pocket in the back of her pants. Quickly going around the counter, Ivy called to Lisa, the other person working there that night, "This guy left his Visa card. I'm going to go give it back to him."

"Whatever." Lisa replied.

Ivy went into the Gala and scanned the entire crowd as quickly as possible. She may have been only a teen, but she had such a good memory that she remembered his face. It might have been the weird eyebrows. It was soon clear he wasn't there.

Ivy went out the door and was soon on the steps. Where was this man? How far did he go? And why did he try to steal a souvenir?

Then she saw him walking across the street. Ivy was sure of it. But before she could start to make her way to him, Dr. Abigail Chase flew past her.

Ivy stood glued to the spot as she watched Dr. Chase talk to him. What the heck was she doing out here? Didn't she have to be inside sipping expensive champagne with the rest of the fancy airheads? This time she was getting the answers to her questions. She started across the street.

The man and Dr. Chase were standing behind a large red van. It was really tacky, Ivy thought, as she approached him. She dug into her pocket and pulled out the receipt, "Uh, excuse me!"

He didn't seem to hear her. The security alarms went off. Ivy watched in confusion as he roughly ushered the souvenir into Dr. Chase's hands. Ivy sneaked and ran around the front of the van. She was quick enough to open the back doors and climb in. This was it. No more boring days at the Archives!

What a weird van this was. All kinds of scientific items and gadgets surrounded her. There was a small cabinet and a laptop computer as well. Were these people scientists?

"Wait, we can't just leave her!" A voice said urgently. It came from the driver's seat.

"Yes we can, go!" The man assured him.

The van took off. Ivy quickly covered herself with a tarp, afraid to come out. This was turning into a car chase; she could feel it. The excitement flowed through her. But then, as fast as it had started, something fell out of a nearby cabinet and hit her head, knocking Ivy Fairview out cold.

"Wait, let GO!"

Ivy opened her eyes immediately to the sound of a woman screaming. She looked around and realized she was still in the van of Mr. Visa. Did she pass out?

As she sat up, a throbbing pain appeared in the side of her head.

"GAAH!" Ivy screamed, cursing under her breath.

She heard the sound of someone opening the back door. Ivy covered herself in the tarp once again. Then she realized her foot was sticking out from underneath. But it was too late.

"Uh, Ben…"

Someone was lifting the tarp up off her. Oh no you don't, Ivy thought. She clenched her hand into a first and punched the person square in the face.

"OWWW!"

Ivy sat up and looked back. It was a guy. Not much later did the credit-card man arrive at the back off the van, along with none other than Dr. Chase.

"Who are you?" He asked.

Ivy regained her breath, "Just the person you left your Visa with. Here."

She reached into her back pocket and handed the card to him.

"Ivy…Ferris?" Dr. Chase frowned, "We just hired her a month ago…how did you get here?"

Ivy cocked an eyebrow, "It's Fairview. How did you?"

The guy she hit was on the grass. He was just regaining consciousness, by the looks of it, and he was clutching his jaw quite a bit. Now she could see what he looked like. His hair was brown and very messy, and he had a sweater on that was dark blue. The pants he was wearing were obviously too big for him. To complete his outfit was a pair of black-rimmed glasses that hid the color of his eyes. Great, Ivy thought to herself, a geek.

"Riley, what are you doing down there?" The man said, helping the guy off the ground.

"Look, she punched me!" Riley pointed at Ivy.

"It was in self-defense." Ivy said evidently.

"Yeah, right. You're a punk. Don't you always go around beating up guys like me?"

"If you're this annoying, then yes."

"Hey, hey, stop it," The man pulled Riley and Ivy apart, "Listen, Miss Fairview, this is all a big misunderstanding. Riley and I will take you back. But I'd like to know how you got in the back of our van in the first place."

Ivy sighed and clicked banged her shoes together. She explained the whole thing to them.

"There, you happy? Now I want my questions answered. Who are you? How come Dr. Chase is here? Why did you try to steal that souvenir of the Declaration?"

"I'm Ben…Ben Jefferson…"

Ivy shook her head, "You're lying."

Ben frowned, "No I'm not."

"Yeah, you are," She continued, "When people lie they avoid eye-contact. At least, really bad liars do. There is hardly anything you can do about it."

Dr. Chase raised her eyebrows, "His name is Ben Gates. I got pulled into this whole thing by accident, and about the souvenir…"

"Will you please be quiet?" Ben gates said to her, annoyed.

"I will when you let me take the Declaration back." Dr. Chase said with a clever smile.

"The…the Declaration? Wait…"

Ivy snatched the poster container from Ben and opened it up. She slowly pulled out the actual Declaration of Independence, and then slid it back in.

"You STOLE it?" She said, her mouth dropping open, "You stole the Declaration of Independence? AND you're name is Ben Gates? The treasure family…Oh my god…"

Riley smirked, "Well this is great. Now along with Dr. Chase, we've pulled in Avril Lavigne."

Ivy's eyes flashed with anger. She hated being called Avril Lavigne

"My name is Ivy," She said through clenched teeth, "I'm only going to tell you this once. Don't you EVER call me Avril Lavigne!"

Ben, impatient, pulled Ivy out of the van and let her into the open park.

"There. Go. You're free."

Ivy looked at him as though he was crazy.

"I'm not going anywhere," Ivy said, "Except with you."

"WHAT!" Riley's eyes grew wide and he shook his head, "Ben, we're not bringing her with us. She's slowing us down as it is!"

"I won't slow you down," Ivy promised, "Please. My life sucks as it is. I've never had a real adventure or anything. But on the plus side, I know a lot about history."

Riley scoffed, "Sure you do. You're a Goth, and probably a Green Day fan too. Why would you know anything?"

Ivy tried to ignore Riley, "The only reason I took the crappy job at the National Archives was so I could look at the historical stuff doing working hours. PLEASE let me come with you."

Ben sighed. Riley closed his eyes as though praying he wouldn't say yes. Dr. Chase put her hands on her hips, apparently knowing the answer.

"Fine. Get back in the van." Ben said finally.

"Get back in the…oh my god…" Riley looked angry, "Come on, Ben, you've got to be kidding! She's a kid, for crying out loud."

"I'm almost 19, for your information," Ivy snapped, "And what are you, 24?"

"25," Riley corrected, "Just get in and shut your yap."

"Alright," Ben said as they starting driving away, "We'll go to my dad's place first."

Ivy smiled evilly at Riley.

"Looks like we're partners in crime." She said.

Riley looked back at her through the mirror, "Don't count on it."


	2. Chapter 2: Chez Patrick Gates

Before I begin, I must thank the generous reviewers!

**Norma Jean the Dancing Machine- **thank you! even the smallest reviews brighten my day!

**sarahofearth-** wow! thanks for the wonderful review! it's not that i'm lazy, but my computer is slow, so i'm not changing ivy's age. besides, when you think about it, if ashton and demi can make it work, i guess this isn't too bad.

**Madame Opera Ghost- **who doesn't love Riley? btw, love your name. the phantom is gorgeous!

**disneychic248**- thanks for the compliment! made my day and motivated me

**CharlieLOVER- **ah, my first reviewer. sorry it wasn't ASAP, but i'll try harder next time!

I have typed this out while watching the movie. Sorry if it isn't completely accurate, but I thought it would be boring to have it exactly like the real one. Also, I'm busy re-creating the Declaration of Independence. It is taking me a total of 17 days, just like it took Thomas Jefferson 17 days to write the rough copy. I'll stop stalling now and begin.

Not long after the awkward meeting, the four companions were at the home of Ben's father in Philadelphia. Ivy hadn't said a word the entire way up, much to Riley's happiness.

"Dad…I'm in a little trouble." Ben said as soon as his father opened the front door.

Benjamin Gates' father looked confused. Just by seeing him you could tell he had never met anyone except his own son before. He surveyed them for a quick second before responding.

He pointed to Dr. Chase, "Is she pregnant?"

A look of confusion spread over Ivy's face. Riley frowned. Dr. Chase looked embarrassed.

"I look pregnant?" She asked Riley. He shook his head.

Ben's father didn't stop there. He turned to Ivy, "Is _she_?"

"Heck, no. I don't even have a boyfriend you pussy." Ivy replied irritably.

"Well if she is, are you going to leave the woman who may be carrying your unborn grandchild out in the cold?" Ben said quickly, referring to Dr. Chase.

Ben's father reluctantly let them in. Ivy looked around the house in awe while the others began to set something up in the dining room.

"Are you kids hungry? I've got some leftover pizza. It's still warm, I think." Mr. Gates offered.

Riley made a move for the pizza. Ivy did the same. Both of them may have been skinny, but pizza was like their savior.

Ben explained to his father they needed room to do something, but he didn't tell him that it was the Declaration of Independence. He also asked for the Silence Dogood letters.

"He dragged you three into this nonsense?" Patrick Gates asked Riley, Dr. Chase and Ivy.

"Literally." Dr. Chase replied.

"I was a stowaway." Ivy said casually.

"I volunteered." Riley stated proudly.

"Well unvolunteer," Mr. Gates said with a harsh tone, "Before you waste your life-"

Ben looked annoyed, "Knock it off, Dad-"

"Sure, I'm the family coot. I have a job, a house, health insurance," Mr. Gates continued mockingly, "At least I had your mother, for however brief a time. At least I had you. And what do you have…"

Mr. Gates looked at Riley, "Him?"

Riley, put on the spot, decided to focus on the pizza. Ivy suppressed a laugh, but choked on her pizza slice.

"Look, if you just give us the letters…we're gone." Ben said plainly. It was obvious he didn't want any fights or trouble going on between his father and himself.

"You disappoint me, Ben." Mr. Gates said solemnly.

Though Ben was hurt by his remark, he stepped forward anyway, "Well maybe that's the real Gates family legacy. Sons who disappoint their fathers."

Mr. Gates said nothing. Ivy felt bad for the both of them, though she didn't know why she cared. It wasn't like she and her father ever had a good relationship anyway.

"Get out," Mr. Gates said finally, "Take your troubles with you."

But Ben didn't give up, "I found The Charlotte."

Mr. Gates' eyes widened, "THE Charlotte? She was a ship?"

Ben smiled, "Yeah, she was beautiful. It was amazing, Dad…"

"And the treasure?"

Ah, though Ivy, I saw this coming.

Ben stuttered a bit, "No…but we found a clue that will lead-"

"Don't you get it, Ben?" Mr. Gates said, his face becoming angrier, "I've finally figured it out. The legend was invented, to keep the British occupied searching for buried treasure. The treasure is a myth."

Ben shook his head, "I refuse to believe that."

"This guy's really determined. What kind of stuff is he smoking?" Ivy whispered to Riley. He ignored her remark, but scoffed.

Mr. Gates finally gave up, "Do what you want, Ben. Do what you want."

"He's probably right," Dr. Chase spoke up, "You don't even know if there _is_ another clue."

Ben thought for a moment, "Well I can think of a way we can find out."

Before long they got started. Ben, Riley and Dr. Chase, who they now had begun to call Abigail, laid out the document on the table while wearing gloves. Ivy arrived with lemons in a bowl from the kitchen.

She watched carefully as Ben and Abigail figured out how to read the map on the back. Ben's dad popped in a few times, but he wasn't around much. Ivy and Riley kept quiet as they watched miraculously as the code appeared on the back. Ben began writing it down.

"What do all the funny numbers mean?" Ivy frowned.

"It's a code." Ben replied, still writing them down, "That's why we need the Silence Dogood letters."

"That's the key?" Abigail asked him.

"The key in Silence undetected," Ben quoted, "Dad, can we have the letters now?"

"Will somebody please explain to me what these magic numbers are?" Riley asked.

"I thought geeks knew everything." Ivy said out loud.

"Please, princess of darkness, keep your comments to yourself." Riley retorted.

Ivy shot him a glare.

Abigail put down the hairdryer she was using for heat, "It's an Ottendorf cipher."

"A Ottenwho?" Ivy frowned.

"Each of these three numbers, corresponds to a word in a key," Ben explained to Ivy and Riley, "Usually a book or newspaper article. In this case…the Silence Dogood letters."

"Dad, we need the letters." Ben said, standing up.

"You know it's just by shear, happenstance," Mr. Gates said, "That his grandfather even found them. They were in an antique desk of the pressroom of the _New England Current_. That's a newspaper."

"Where are the letters?" Ben said tiredly.

"I don't have them, son." Mr. Gates replied.

"What?" Ben was getting sick of this.

"I don't have them." Mr. Gates repeated.

Ben cleared his throat, "Where are they?"

"I donated them to the Franklin Institute of Philadelphia." Mr. Gates said straightforwardly.

Ben stood up, "Time to go."

Riley made a motion to do the same. Ivy and Abigail stayed put.

"I still can't believe it," Ivy heard Abigail say to herself, "All this time, no one knew what was on the back…"

Mr. Gates came to the table, "That back of what?"

"Whoa!" Riley said, leaning forward to grab the document. Mr. Gates got to it first.

"NO!" Ben exclaimed, but it was too late.

Patrick Gates found himself looking at the front of the Declaration of Independence.

"Oh my god…oh my god…" He said in disbelief.

"We're screwed." Ivy said, shaking her head in dismay.

"I know." Ben said, trying to sound calm.

"What have you done?" Mr. Gates' hands were shaky as he looked it over, "This is the Declaration of Independence!"

"Yes, and it's very delicate." Abigail said, taking the document from him with her gloved hand.

"You stole it?" Mr. Gates looked up. Ivy and Riley pointed at Ben.

"Dad, I can explain," Ben tried, "But I don't have time. It was necessary, and you saw the cipher…"

"That will just lead to more clues!" Mr. Gates continued, "There is no treasure. I wasted 20 years of my life. And now you've destroyed yours. You pulled me into all of this."

Ben bit his lip, "Well we can't have that."

They left Patrick Gates duct-taped to a chair and took off in his car.

Ben and Abigail were in the front. A tired Riley leaned on the window. Ivy stared outside hers at the passing cars and streets around them.

"Your dad's got a sweet ride." Riley muttered.

"It's better than that hippie van you guys had before." Ivy said.

Riley shot Ivy a glare, "Hey, it wasn't a hippie van."

Ivy loved making him angry, "Whatever."

"I think we should change clothes. Look kind of conspicuous, don't you think?" Ben said to Abigail.

"I'd love to go shopping too but we don't have any money." Riley said aloud.

"Here. I stole from my dad's office. He usually tucks a couple of hundred dollar bills between the pages." Ben handed Abigail a small black book.

She smiled, "_Common Sense_, how appropriate."

Ivy sat up, "_Common Sense_? As in the pamphlet published by Thomas Paine? How the h# did your dad get one of those?"

Ben shrugged, "Got a copy from a friend."

"Hey, not to be rude," Riley spoke up, "But do you think Avril should get, you know, "normal people" clothes. Looks kind of conspicuous, don't you think?"

"I told you not to call me Avril!" Ivy sneered, "And really, do you think anyone would suspect to see me with you guys? I wouldn't look conspicuous."

"She's right," Ben said, "Ivy, you don't strike me as the type to like history."

Ivy crossed her arms, "Same with everybody else. I keep my secret hidden."

"When are we gonna get there?" Riley spoke up again, "I'm hungry. This car smells weird."

Ivy muttered, "YOU smell weird."

Riley made the motion to kick her foot. Ivy kicked him back harder, and he stopped. One thing was for certain: this whole treasure arrangement wasn't going to be easy.

It seems that Ivy and Riley STILL aren't getting along. Doesn't matter; I think it's cute. If you agree, don't hesitate to tell me. As such, I am attempting to give Ben and Abby equal spotlight as the other characters. Anyone think I'm doing a good job or ruining the beautiful film, speak up! Otherwise, review! Loverly yours, Autumn


	3. Chapter 3: Pass and Stow

I am trying to get these in quicker. Like many of you, I LOVE RILEY! So that motivates me to write more for this story. The story isn't just about him; it's about the treasure, and Ben and Abby and of course, Miss Ivy. Thanks to all the generous and fantastic reviews! (sarahofearth, the constant quoting makes me laugh. It's great!)

They were headed for Philadelphia. Patrick Gates did say that he donated them to the Franklin Institution, so naturally, that was where they went.

Ben and Abby immediately went to go get some new clothes, as they were still in eveningwear. Riley was stuck with Ivy, and they both went to the Franklin Institution.

"I still can't believe Ben let you come along," Riley complained as they crossed the street, "It's just more trouble for the police."

"Whose side are you on, Einstein?" Ivy snapped, "You should consider my joining of your Founding Fathers Conspiracy Theory Posse to your advantage."

Riley frowned, "In what way?"

Ivy rolled her eyes, "Seriously, would anyone suspect ME to be interested in American History? Come on, you have to admit it. I could go inside and check out the letters, and then we're good to go. Brilliant, is it not?"

"No, it's not," Riley replied as they walked over to the park, "People will definitely suspect something."

"You always gotta make things harder for everyone, don't you?" Ivy retorted.

"If you haven't noticed, I can't stand you. Therefore, you're the only one I make things difficult for."

"Well, I am honored."

"Freak."

"Geek."

The two of them sat down on a bench and took out the pad of paper Ben had used earlier to write out the code. Riley unfolded it and frowned.

"I can't go in there, and you can't go in there. What are we going to do?" Riley bit his lip and put on his glasses.

Ivy took the time to look around the park. She saw a little boy sitting on a bench not too far away from them.

Riley glanced at her, "What are you looking at?"

Ivy stood up, "Opportunity."

Riley was about to grab her, but Ivy was well on her way over to the boy. He was listening to a CD-player. Ivy casually glanced at the CD, and smiled when she recognized the band.

"Simple Plan, huh?" Ivy asked him, "They're pretty good. I like, "Addicted."

The boy looked at Ivy, "I'm Just a Kid is my favorite song."

Ivy smiled, "That's a good one. Hey, listen, my friend and I need your help. Could you do us a favor?"

"I can't believe we're paying this kid to check out the Silence Dogood letters." Riley said in disbelief.

"I know. You must admit that it was a smart move. Who would suspect a KID?" Ivy said with a flashy smile. Besides annoying him, being smarter than Riley was now one of her favorite things to do.

Riley tapped his pencil on the newspaper while they waited, "Hey, if it was your idea, how come I'm the one paying him?"

Ivy cocked an eyebrow, "Obviously, because you're the only one out of the two of us that has money."

Riley was about to have a witty remark when the boy came running across the street.

"S, S, A, N, D." The boy said

"Ok," Riley jotted it down, "You sure this is right?"

The boy shot Riley a look. Ivy laughed. Riley ignored them both and wrote out the letters on the side of the newspaper.

"No, N." The kid said, pointed to the scribbly lettering otherwise known as Riley's printing.

"That is an N." Riley replied.

"It doesn't look like an N." The kid said earnestly.

"He's right, it looks like an R." Ivy said.

Riley was now irritated by them both, "You know what, here. Last one. One more dollar."

"Thank you!" The kid snipped the bill from Riley's fingers and ran off.

"It doesn't really look like an N." Ivy said to Riley when the kid went inside.

Riley was getting sick of her already, "Hey, shut up. This was your plan."

Ivy grinned evilly, "Ah, yes. My _intelligent_ plan."

"Geez, don't give yourself so much credit." Riley murmured. He had, after all, agreed to it.

Ivy shook her head and laughed. She looked around the block once more, and suddenly, her cheerfulness was sucked right out of her. If she wasn't mistaken, Ivy saw a man with blonde hair wearing a blue suit walking up the stairs of the Franklin Institution. A man she knew very well, and had hoped she would never see again.

"Maybe I'm just being paranoid." Ivy mumbled through gritted teeth.

"What?" Riley asked.

"Nothing." Ivy said to him. She watched the man go inside the Franklin Institute.

Fear. Paranoia. Insecurity. All things Ivy hated. There had to be some way to escape.

"Hey, Riley, what does the message say so far?" Ivy asked, peering over his shoulder at the newspaper.

Riley turned the newspaper as he read it aloud, "The vision to see the treasure past, comes as the timely shadow, crosses in front of the house of pass and…pass and what?"

Ivy sighed. This was harder than she thought. Then, as fate would have it, Ivy looked up at the right time. A bus was just about to move when she saw a picture of the Liberty Bell. She nudged Riley and pointed at it.

"Pass and Stow." Riley mouthed.

"Quick, write it down. We've gotta show Ben and Abigail." Ivy said, standing up.

"What's with the sudden rush?" Riley asked suspiciously.

"That doesn't matter. Come on!" Ivy grabbed Riley's arm and pulled him away.

The boy came out of the Franklin Institute and came running across the street. Ian was following him, but keeping his distance. The bus pulled out of the way, and Ian saw the boy was alone.

"What's up?" Shaw asked Ian.

Ian looked at the empty bench, "I'm not sure."

"Hey!" Riley called to Ben and Abigail.

"Riley, Ivy! Did you get it?" Ben asked curiously.

"Oh, I got it." Riley said excitedly. Ivy punched him angrily.

"Ok, _we _got it, whatever, it doesn't matter," Riley continued, "The vision to see the treasure past comes as the timely shadow the passes in front of the house of Pass and Stow. Now Pass and Stow, of course, referring to-"

"The Liberty Bell." Ben and Abigail said unison.

Riley was a bit angry, "Why do you have to do that?"

"Well John Pass and John Stow cast the bell." Abigail said, as though it was a bit of information everyone in the world knew.

"Ok…then what does the rest of it mean?" Ivy asked. She looked expectantly at Ben.

"_The vision to see the treasure past _must refer to a way to read the map." Ben said, pacing back and forth in his thoughts.

"Wait, I thought the cipher was the map." Riley said, confused.

"No, the cipher was the way to find the way to read the map." Ben explained.

"And the way to read the map can be found when the _timely shadow_ crosses in front of the Liberty Bell." Abigail said, growing more excited.

"Crosses over in front of the _house_ of the Liberty Bell. Independence Hall." Ben said, nodding.

"So, _timely shadow_…it's a specific time." Abigail said.

"Right." Ben said, staring right at Abigail in admiration.

"Uh, what time?" Riley asked.

"What time…what time?" Ben thought harder, "Oh wait…you're gonna love this!"

Ben walked over to the woman working at the cashier. Riley and Ivy wondered what in the world he was thinking of doing.

"Excuse me, can I see one of those hundred dollar bills I paid you with?" Ben asked politely.

"No." The woman said, trying to sound sorry, though it was clear she didn't care.

"Give him the hundred dollar bill so one of the greatest treasures in history can be found." Ivy said, a hint of irritation in her voice.

Ben, Abigail and Riley looked at Ivy in shock. To their surprise, the woman casually gave the bill to Ben, looking at Ivy like she was crazy.

Ben held up his water bottle and looked at the bill through it, "I think, if we look at this clock tower, we may find the specific time."

After a few minutes, Ben could see it clearly, "2:22."

"What time is it now?" Abigail asked Ivy.

"Almost three." Ivy replied.

Abigail sighed, "We missed it."

"No we didn't." Riley said.

Everyone looked at Riley.

"What…you don't know this? I know something about history that you don't know." Riley seemed very pleased with this.

"I'd be very excited to learn about it Riley." Ben said impatiently.

"Wait, hold on one second, let me just take in this moment. This is, this is cool…is this how you feel all the time? I mean except for now, of course-"

"RILEY!" Ivy shouted.

"Oh, right," Riley said, enjoying the fact that Ivy was jealous, "What I know, is that Daylight Savings, wasn't established until World War 1. If it's 3pm now, in 1776 it would be, 2pm!"

"Riley, you're a genius." Ben said, heading out the door.

"Did you hear that? Ben said I'm a genius." Riley said triumphantly at Ivy, "Do you know who the first person to suggest Daylight Savings-"

"Benjamin Franklin." Ivy said quickly.

Riley clenched his fists. He had hoped Ivy would know that.

"I can be a genius too, you know." Ivy said with an evil grin.

"I'll believe it when I see it." Riley muttered.

Even though they fought with each other, they still figured out Pass and Stow! Ah yes, and Riley had his moment. I can't leave that out. And how does Ivy know Ian? You'll just have to wait and see. That's going to be VERY interesting. Muahaha.


	4. Chapter 4: XRay Specs

, All these amazing reviews! Riley would be proud! Ok…but since he is not here to defend himself or speak otherwise, I say he is proud. Oh yeah, the story! Hehe, almost forgot why you guys were here…

"We're really going up in the tower where the Centennial Bell is?" Ivy asked for about the third time. She could hardly contain her excitement.

"Yes, now please, for once, be quiet. We're on a tour, you know!" Riley hissed.

Ivy shrugged, "Fine…but you gotta admit you're psyched!"

Riley looked at her confusingly, "Excuse me?"

"Say it, Riley," Ivy said, another evil grin spreading across her face, "Say, 'I'm psyched!'"

Riley mumbled, "I'm psyched."

Ivy cupped her hand over her ear and leaned, "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"You heard me."

"No I didn't," Ivy said, "You have to say it louder."

"I'M PSYCHED, OK!" Riley nearly shouted heatedly.

"Pardon me, sir," The tour guide said suddenly, "This is a tour. Please keep your voice down."

Riley turned pink. Ivy laughed. Ben and Abigail acted like they didn't know them.

"I'm going to get you for that." Riley whispered.

Ivy shook her head, "S, man. That was fing hilarious."

Ben and Abigail strayed away from the group. Riley and Ivy followed suit. Ignoring a sign that read, "No Admittance," the four of them went up the stairs that lead to the tower.

In no time, Ben led them to a blue door. They entered, Riley carefully shutting the door behind them. Now they were inside the clock face.

The determined expedition continued. Climbing up one last flight of stairs, Ben opened the door and revealed the bell.

"What bell is this?" Riley asked when he saw it.

"The Centennial bell," Ivy explained before Ben could speak, "Replaced the Liberty Bell in 1876. It's weird, though, because the Liberty Bell finally cracked on George Washington's birthday."

"I just wanted to know what bell it was, not a whole history lesson!" Riley groaned, "That's what I've got Ben for."

Ben focused on searching for the "timely shadow." He found the shadow, and the clue.

"Alright, I'm gonna go down there. I'll meet you in the signing room." He said quickly before departure.

Abigail nodded and went to leave. Riley took the time to look at the shadow.

"3:22," He said, making sure Ivy could hear him, "My idea."

"Shut up." Ivy said, a hint of jealousy in her voice. Riley savored the moment.

Ben arrived in the signing room where they were waiting.

"Dude, what did you get?" Ivy asked eagerly.

"I found this," Ben said, showing them the glasses, "Some kind of ocular device. _The vision to see the treasure past_."

"They're, like, early American…x-ray specs…" Riley said when he took them.

Abigail nodded, "Benjamin Franklin invented something like these."

"I think that's it." Ben replied.

Carefully, they unrolled the Declaration of Independence. Ben explained to them that the next clue would be seen if someone looked through the glasses. As each person held a corner of the document, Ben hesitated.

Riley noticed the unusual pause, "What?"

"It's just…the last time this was here, it was being signed." Ben said in amazement.

Abigail smiled. Even Ivy for a moment lost herself in this incredible feeling.

"Ben, there's another tour coming. Riley said, breaking the silence.

"Oh, right."

Wasting no time, Ben took the spectacles and put them on. He saw the secret message.

"_Here at the Wall_…spelled with two Es. Take a look." Ben handed the glasses to Abigail.

Abigail looked at the message. She was just as astonished by it as Ben.

Riley sighed, "Why can't they just say 'Go to this place and here's the treasure, spend wisely?'"

"Who the h would write that?" Ivy said in disgust, "Is that what you would've done if you were in charge of this whole treasure?"

Riley shook his head, "No, of course not. I'd spend it!"

Ben looked at the window, "Oh no."

Abigail looked too, "Oh no."

Two of Ian's men were walking around outside the window.

"How did they find us?" Riley asked, withdrawing the curtain.

"Ian has nearly unlimited resources," Ben explained while he and Abigail put away the Declaration, "And he's smart."

"S!" Ivy cursed, "You mean to tell me that Ian Howe is after the treasure too!"

Riley glanced back, "How did you know his name?"

Ivy stared down at the floor, "You mentioned it…"

Riley was about to say something else but Ben interrupted, "Ok, we have to separate the lock from the key. You three take the Declaration, I'll take the glasses."

"Wait, then it's uneven. We've got more people than you." Ivy said.

"Well, you've got a bigger historical item than me," Ben said quickly, "Meet me at the car, and call if you have any problems."

"Oh, like if we got caught and killed?" Riley said anxiously.

"Yeah…that would be a big problem." Ben replied.

Ivy suddenly felt her heart race. She was now running with treasure hunters, and carrying a stolen document that created the United States. Worse, Ian was now involved. How would she ever face him?

"Are you coming?"

Ivy broke out of her thoughts. She nodded quickly and followed Riley and Abigail.

Ian and Shaw were watching from the tower.

"There he is." Shaw said, pointing at Ben.

"Shaw look, there's the others," Ian said, "Wait a minute…is that…"

Shaw frowned, "You mean the girl with the bluish hair?"

"Yeah," Ian said, "I think that's…never mind, she can be taken care of. Let's go."

I am so evil for not telling you guys how Ian and Ivy know each other. But since I'm in a good mood, I thought maybe I'd test you. The person who guesses how they know each other will receive a cameo in one of the chapters. Sound fair? Ok then.


	5. Chapter 5: Foot Chase

To sarahofearth, sorry about the swear word mistakes. I had s, but when I uploaded the document, for some reason in the actual story they didn't appear. My apologies. I myself don't swear, and Ivy is a punk, so she kinda has to.

I can't beleive how many reviews I've got. This is...a dream come true. wipes eyes thank you...

Ivy, Abigail and Riley tried to walk inconspicuously out of Independence Hall. Abigail's eyes were darting everywhere, Riley was trying to follow her without getting lost, and Ivy was looking for any sign of Ian.

"This reminds me of when I busted out of Prep School." Ivy said without thinking.

"_You_ went to Prep School?" Riley said, cocking an eyebrow.

"And then broke out of it?" Abigail asked, looking back at her.

"Yeah, I went against my will," Ivy replied non-chalantly, "I told you that, didn't I?"

"Let me think…hmm…NO." Riley said, pretending to think hard.

"Oh, well, you never gave me the chance," Ivy said, "Hey Abby, what are we supposed to-"

Abigail made a sudden turn and whipped to the left. Riley and Ivy almost ran into each other.

"Walk much?" Ivy snarled as they caught up with her.

"You were _supposed_ to be watching where she was going." Riley shot back.

"Well, Nerdpants, you failed to mention that." Ivy said with a wave of her hand.

Riley looked enraged, "_Nerdpants?_!"

Ivy nodded and smiled, "Well, you _are_ a nerd, and your pants are, like, super-sized over your toothpick body."

Riley looked like he wanted to slug her. Abigail stopped him when she stopped unexpectedly. And she had good reason. Two of Ian's comrades were close by and within eyesight.

"S!" Ivy screamed.

"Time to run!" Riley cried out, and the three of them took off.

Abigail was running the fastest, so naturally she took the lead. Riley and Ivy tried their best to follow her as quickly as possible.

"In here!" Abigail shouted, opening a door and darting inside.

Riley went in after her, Ivy right on his tail.

Now they were inside some sort of food market. For now they had narrowly lost Shaw and Phil. For now.

"Follow me!" Abigail said, making another miraculous quick turn.

Riley and Ivy ran right into each other and fell on the floor, taking down another person with them. Ivy landed on top of Riley, and the girl was on top of her.

"What is wrong with you?" The girl snarled, standing up and brushing herself off.

Before either of them could answer, the girl picked up her bag, which read "Jennifer" in bold letters on the side. She said just before walking away, "Get a room!"

Ivy frowned, trying to figure out what the girl meant, and then realized she was still on top of Riley.

"AAAGGHH!"

"What, you think it wasn't bad for me?" Riley said as soon as Ivy got up.

"Just don't say a word to Ben or Abigail," Ivy said with a threatening tone, "Or I'll-"

Ivy stopped. She had now just taken notice of Riley's shoes. Without evening worrying about what he would do in offense, Ivy lifted a pant leg and saw the Converse All-Stars symbol.

"You like Converse…" Ivy said, her voice trailing off.

Riley was looking at Ivy like she was insane, "Yeah…so?"

"Oh, nothing," Ivy said, sounding much unlike her usually annoying self, "I just never knew any guys who liked them. They're my favorite shoes."

Riley, surprisingly, didn't say something mean to Ivy. This wasn't like her at all. Was she actually being…normal?

He glanced at the flower section just at the nick of time.

Riley nudged Ivy in the shoulder, "Look, there's Abigail."

Ivy snapped back to reality, "Let's go."

Abigail wasn't looking their way, so Riley touched her shoulder to get her attention. It scared her and made her jump.

She put her hand over her rapidly beating heart, "Where were you!"

"Uh, hiding…come on!" Ivy urged, and they took off once more.

The trio decided to head towards City Hall. Little did they know, Shaw was following closely behind.

They ran across the busy streets, almost getting hit by cars in the process. Ivy was used to this; it was like that the night she escaped from Prep School.

Still holding the Declaration, Abigail, Riley and Ivy ran through the historical landmark. A crowd was closely approaching, and Abigail and Riley got stuck inside. Ivy turned around just in time, as Abigail threw the Declaration to her.

Ivy, feeling her heart race in both fear and adrenalin ran for her life. A man on a bike ran into her, and she fell. The Declaration flew out of her hands.

The breath was knocked out of her. But being the strong little thing she was, Ivy recovered quickly. She saw the poster container on the road, just barely missing being run over by a taxi. There was only one thought in Ivy's mind: grab it!

Ivy pulled herself up and ran out to the middle of the road. Scooping up the Declaration, she heard the sound of a truck's horn. Riley pushed himself through the crowd just in time to grab Ivy and snatch her out of danger. They both landed on the curb.

Ivy sat up, in shock at what had just happened. Riley saved her life.

Abigail rushed over to them, but it was too late. Ivy had in the process dropped the Declaration, and it was still in the street.

Ivy, Abigail and Riley looked just in time to see Ian triumphantly pick up the Declaration of Independence. He opened the lid, looked inside and smiled.

"Good to see you again, Liberty." Ian said to Ivy.

Ivy's face turned bright red. Riley swore that he had never seen her so angry.

"What the f did you call me!" Ivy said, standing up.

They heard a shout. Riley looked back to see Shaw and Phil running towards them. He quickly helped Abigail up and urged her to run. Seeing Ivy wouldn't budge, Riley grabbed the unsuspecting rebel and threw her over his shoulder. Then Abigail and Riley ran away, Ivy kicking and screaming the whole time.

"WHAT THE H IS WRONG WITH YOU! PUT ME DOWN!" Ivy shouted at the top of her lungs, struggling.

Riley, tired of carrying an unstable load, did as he was told and put Ivy down. They were standing in a small area close to Independence Hall.

"I've gotta call Ben," Riley said, taking out his cell phone, "Hope he won't be too upset."

As Riley dialed the phone, Abigail turned to Ivy.

"How do you know Ian?" She asked out of the blue.

"I don't know him." Ivy lied.

"You can't lie, Ivy. You're avoiding eye contact." Abigail said, remembering what Ivy had said.

Ivy cursed under her breath.

"We lost it," Riley was saying to Ben, "Yeah, we're fine. (He looked at Ivy) I think we are. Ok."

Riley closed his cell.

"We need to be honest with each other, Ivy," Abigail said, "This whole treasure business is both dangerous and requires the truth to achieve."

"Ok, ok," Ivy said, sighing, "Well, I'll tell you that Uncle Ian is the reason I was in Prep School to begin with."

Abigail's mouth dropped open. Riley was almost speechless.

He gaped for a moment, "Ian's your _uncle_?"

Ivy nodded, "Yep. That's all I'm gonna say, because- Mother Fer!"

They rounded the corner just in time to see Ben leaned up against his car. He was surrounded by FBI agents, one of which who was putting him in handcuffs. Worse, the glasses were on top of the car, indicating the FBI would soon know about the treasure. Ben's eyes seemed to say, 'Go now, before they see you!' as they made eye contact.

Abigail, Riley and Ivy turned back and went to a grassy area with a fountain.

"This is a, you guys." Ivy said, sitting down on the bench beside Riley.

"Why do you have to swear all the time?" He said irritably.

"Why do you care?" Ivy replied.

Abigail ignored their little fight. She leaned on bench..

"Riley, do you know how to get in touch with Ian?"

Riley, who was burying his face in his hands, looked up at her. Ivy looked just as confused at Abigail's unlikely question.

Riley replied, "Excuse me?"

As I announced last time, the person who figures out how Ivy and Ian know each other shall receive a cameo. Congratulations to Jennifer, also known as GalahadsFallenKnight0! Yes, Ian is Ivy's uncle, and the reason she went to Prep School. Which explains her hatred. But wait, perhaps there is more to Ivy's family life problems. You'll just have to wait and see.


	6. Chapter 6: Confessions and Clues

Ok, I just got my first bad review. I'm not going to email you and 'bitch' about what you said. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I always say 'There are two sides to every story'. You chose to write to me about the bad side, and I respect that. However, I must remind you that **nobody's perfect**. On with the story.

Ben was taken into FBI custody. While they took him to their headquarters, Abigail contacted Ian via Riley's cell phone. After a lot of talking, they worked out a plan. Now Abigail, Riley and Ivy were waiting for Ian's comrades to pick them up.

"…so let me get this straight. Ian's going to help Ben escape from FBI custody. Then we're going to find the treasure, and Ian will go to jail?" Ivy said, just processing the information.

"Yes, that's the plan," Abigail said, "Now, I think we should figure out the clue. I recall it said 'Here at the Wall', spelled with two E's."

"Wait, wait," Riley said, putting up his hand as a stop signal, "There's something I want to figure out first."

Ivy swallowed hard. She knew what Riley was going to say.

"How is Ian, your uncle, the reason for you going to Prep School?"

Ivy crossed her arms. Riley was looking her right in the eye. For the first time, she noticed that his eyes had a brilliant blue color, almost like the sky…

Abigail stood beside him, "Well?"

Ivy blinked, "Well…ok. Fine. I'll explain."

She took a breath, and began, "I lived in New Jersey practically all my life. My parents, Elizabeth and John, were just like everyday mom and dad. They would read bedtime stories, play with their kids, that kind of stuff. Everything was fine until my sister Ashley graduated."

Abigail mused, "You have a sister?"

Ivy nodded, "Yeah, and a brother named Greg. They were a year apart. Anyway, I was about 13 when Ashley became a professor at NYU, and then Greg became a football coach for one of the best teams in the state. Mom and Dad were so proud. They brought them up in every conversation, bragged about them to all their neighbors. That kind of thing. So naturally, they expected me to be something like them."

Riley somehow knew where this was going. He had now come to know Ivy a little more.

"I wasn't exactly the kind of daughter they had hoped I would be. I liked to blast music in the middle of the night, play my guitar, write songs…and break rules. Mostly my curfew. My parents thought that maybe there was something wrong with me, and it was Ian who suggested that I go to Prep School."

"And your parents listened to him?" Abigail asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He was very persuasive, saying stuff like, 'She'll benefit from the experience,' and, 'Maybe she may end up like Ashley.' So, the very next day, they sent me."

"I hated that stupid school. I want to leave, but I didn't want to go to my parents' house. As far as I was concerned, it wasn't my home anymore. The night I left, I discovered information on Washington, D.C., and I escaped into the night. I've been on the run ever since."

Abigail shook her head. Riley's mouth hung open.

"So…uh…" Riley fiddled with his thumbs, "Is Ivy really your real name?"

Ivy bit her lip, "Not exactly. When I was little, the boys in my Grade 1 class were throwing rocks at all the girls. The sissy Barbie-doll ones just sat down and cried. I ran to a group of trees and picked some poison ivy. Victoriously I smeared it on their disgusting little faces."

"You were a violent little kid?" Riley said in sarcastic disbelief.

"Hey, I was just the only girl who fought back!" Ivy argued, "After that, all the guys would run around chanting, "Poison Ivy Girl, Poison Ivy Girl," until I threatened to do it again."

Riley lifted an eyebrow, "That's how you got the name Ivy?"

Ivy nodded, "Uh-huh. My real name is nothing like it."

"Well, what is it?"

"I'm not telling."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Just because!"

Riley leaned back a bit in his chair, "What, is it Annabelle or something?"

Ivy crossed her arms, "NO."

He smirked, "Right."

Ivy groaned, "Riley, you frickin'…uggh…fine. It's Liberty Christina, ok?"

Ivy closed her eyes and waited to hear him laugh at her. But he didn't.

"That's nothing to be ashamed of," Riley said surprisingly, "You do know that Liberty means, 'freedom'."

"Yeah, of course I do," Ivy snapped, "Most of the kids I grew up with thought it was dumb, and all the adults were like, 'Oh, isn't that SWEET!' It's a bunch a bull."

Riley scoffed, "Well if it helps, my grandmother wanted to name me Winston."

Ivy's grudge was broken when she burst out laughing.

"WINSTON?" Ivy said, tears streaming down her face, "You can't be serious…"

"Oh yeah," Riley said, sporting a small smile, "That was what it was going to be. Then my mom suggested Riley, and my dad liked it better. Whatever possessed my grandma to think of it, I'll never know."

Ivy was holding her stomach, "Just think…Winston Poole. Oh my god, that's friggin' hilarious."

Abigail said, "Sorry to interrupt your fun, but what about the clue?"

Riley tried to think, "The only thing involving 'Wall' I can think of is the Great Wall of China. Hey, Chinese food, that sounds really good right now!"

Ivy laughed at Riley. Normally she would say something mean. Then, out of nowhere, it hit her.

"Abigail!" Ivy exclaimed, "The original settlers were the Dutch. They built a wall to keep the British out. It was then called, 'Wall Street', and what is now Broadway, used to be 'Heere.'"

"It's at Wall Street and Broadway! Ivy, that's fantastic!" Abigail exclaimed.

Just then, a car pulled up. Shaw, who was in the driver's seat, shouted, "Get in!"

Abigail got in the passenger's seat. She wasn't completely afraid of Shaw anymore. Not when Ben's life was at stake.

Riley and Ivy got in the back. The car pulled away, and the three companions all sighed nervously. They didn't know where they were going. All they knew was that they had to save their friend.

Hmm, things seem to be changing for good 'ol Nerdpants and Avril Lavigne. Or are they? Haha, I can just hear them in my head yelling at me. Ouch, ok guys, not so violent! Geez.


	7. Chapter 7: The Rebel Breaks Down

I just wanna make a little note here. School started for me today, and I'm a Grade 9 (Minor Niner, hehehe), so that means I won't be able to post this all the time. I'll try, of course, but it'll be hard. But thanks again to my wonderful reviewers! You guys rock! And this one will touch your hearts...

It was a long drive. So long in fact, Riley fell asleep. Ivy ignored him and stared out the window. This was the second time she had been stuck in the back with Nerdpants.

Shaw's cell phone rang. He answered it.

"Hello?" Shaw said quickly, passing it back to Ivy, "It's for you."

Ivy took the phone. Surely, it had to be Ian.

It was.

"How are you doing, Liberty? I do hope you had an enjoyable time at school."

Ivy scowled, "What do you want?"

Ian chuckled, "Still in need of an attitude adjustment, I see. Well I thought it might be interesting that you knew about your father."

"My…my father? What did you do to him, you sicko!"

"I didn't do anything. I just got a call from my sister-in-law about two weeks ago. My brother had a heart attack. He's dead."

Ivy froze. Her face turned white.

"Umm…" Ivy bit her lip, "Ok…bye."

She closed the phone and gave it back to Shaw. Leaning towards the window, Ivy stared out into space.

"I just…I can't believe Dad's...gone…" Ivy said softly. The tears she had held back for so long were now burning her eyes.

Riley was still fast asleep. He was in one of those deep sleeps, where you can still hear the voices around you, but you can't move. He couldn't figure out what he was hearing was real or not. Riley soon drifted off to slumber, and was in another world.

Ivy squeezed her eyes shut and suppressed a cry, but a tear escaped and ran down her cheek. This was it. Everything she had never wanted to be. The reason she had become a runaway, rebel...all of it. Right in front of the people she always tried to impress. Her life was ruined.

When she was little, Ivy remembered her mother would hold her when she cried. But her mother was not there, and she desperately wanted someone to embrace her. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

Her vision blurred with tears, Ivy leaned on Riley for comfort. It was his shoulder she chose to cry on, and she didn't care. In her mind, Ivy knew that Shaw and Abby weren't going to look back any time soon, and that Riley was fast asleep and wouldn't be aware of it.

Riley was surprisingly warm, and sort of cuddly. NO, he was just Nerdpants...the leaning post. Yeah, that was it. Ivy was not about to admit that maybe, just maybe, she didn't completely hate him…

Ivy cried herself to sleep, her head on Riley's shoulder.


	8. Chapter 8: A Deal With Ian

Heeeeeere's #8! Sorry for the wait, I just started high school. It's pretty good, but I keep getting lost. But hey, that's just me! Anywho, glad to know you guys are liking the Ivy/Riley chemistry, though it's slowly coming. I think Ivy is having feelings toward him, she just doesn't know it yet. And it's not like she'd admit it anyway! Thanks again for the amazing reviews, they make me want to write you guys some more!

Just a quick note: I almost always skip Ben's parts and just show it from Abby, Ivy and Riley's point of view, so I'll divide it between Ben's POV and their POV.

From Abigail, Ivy and Riley's POV:

"Ivy…Ivy, wake up…"

Ivy groaned. Someone was gently shaking her awake. Not now. Not when she was so comfortable. If this was that annoying roommate of hers, she was definitely moving out…

"IVY! GET OFF ME!"

This time she reacted right away. It was Riley's angry voice.

Ivy's eyes flew open and she saw that she was lying on Riley.

"Ewwww! Oh my god, I'm scarred for life! I'm going to get a nerd disease! AAGGHH!"

Riley scoffed, "Speak for yourself!_ You_ were on _me_!"

Abigail interrupted them, "Listen, you two. We've got to get a hold of Ben."

"Why? Where are we?" Ivy asked.

The car had come to a stop. It was parked outside a pawn shop in New York City. Ivy recognized it. This was the city that she and her family visited every summer. The same city that she had snuck away to see Green Day in concert.

"We're in New York," Shaw said, getting out of the car, "Now if you two in the back would stop flirting, we could get this show on the road."

"_Flirting_!" Ivy said, her expression becoming disgusted, "Listen, baldie, we're not flirting. For the record, I don't flirt with _nerds_."

"You flirt with other punks, right?" Riley said sarcastically.

Ivy shot Riley a glare, "What would you know? You don't know anything about me! Nobody does! And you know why? Because nobody cares! I'm just me, the annoying, sarcastic lonely girl."

Riley's blue eyes surveyed her, "Ivy...I heard about your dad."

Ivy's glare faded away and she refused to look at him. So he hadn't been completely asleep.

Riley sighed, "Listen, I'm sorry, alright? Everyone deals with stuff like that. Maybe we could somehow get you back home to your family…"

"No, no," Ivy said, shaking her head, "I'm not going back there. They hate me. They're not my family anymore."

Riley was silent for a moment. Did Ivy really think that the people she had grown up with hated her? Maybe so, but why was she so sure of it?

"Ivy, how do you know?"

"What?"

"How do you know they hate you?"

Ivy turned back to him, "I…I just…"

"What if they miss you? I'd miss you if you were my sister."

Ivy's mouth dropped open. Riley bit his lip, thinking "What did I say that for!"

"Riley…" Ivy said, staring at him, "No one's ever said something like that to me before."

Riley was about to respond when Abigail, who had been talking with Shaw the whole time, looked back and spoke to them.

"Come on," She said, "We need your help."

It wasn't long before they were at Wall Street and Broadway. Shaw dropped them off, and then drove off to meet Ben.

Ben's POV:

Ben angrily questioned Shaw, "What did you do with Abigail, Riley and Ivy?"

Shaw ignored his inquiry and threw a bundle of dry clothes at Ben, "Hope these fit."

Ben glared at the man, "I said what did you do with them? Riley's the only one who could have told you guys that line about Edison."

Shaw still didn't answer, "Did you bring the glasses?"

"I don't know. Tell me what's happening here." Ben demanded.

Shaw looked him directly in the eye, "Ask your girlfriend. She's the one calling all the shots now. She won't shut up."

Ben smiled. Abigail must've done something good.

He soon was changed and sat in the back of the car between Shaw and Phil, while another one of Ian's comrades drove. They weren't driving long when Shaw's cell phone rang.

"Yeah, hello?"

He handed the phone to Ben and said in disbelief, "It's for you."

Ben frowned but spoke, "Hello?"

"Hi, sweetie," Abigail said mockingly, "How's your day going?"

Ben caught on right away. She must have told them that she really was his girlfriend. That would have stopped some questioning.

"Uh, interesting, dear," Ben replied, "So, what, you're working with Ian now?"

"Turns out helping someone escape from FBI custody is a criminal act," Abigail said with a smile, "And he's the only criminal we knew. So we called him and made a deal."

"Well, you're, um," Ben lowered his voice for more privacy, "You're alright? You're safe?"

"Yeah, we all are," Abigail said, "Riley's right here doing something clever with a computer."

"Hey!" Riley said in his usual friendly way when Abigail gave him the phone, "I'm tracking you through the GPS in Shaw's phone. They take a turn anywhere we don't want, we'll know it, so don't-"

Abigail took the phone away.

"-worry." Riley finished.

Abigail continued, "If Ian tries to double-cross us, we can call the FBI and tell them right where you are. And where to find Ian."

"And where is that?" Ben asked.

"Right across the street from where we're hiding," Abigail said, "At the intersection of Wall Street and Broadway."

"Well, you figured out the clue." Ben said proudly.

"Actually, Ivy figured it out," Abigail said, "Just goes to show you can't underestimate people."

Ivy, who had been watching the screen on Riley's laptop, grabbed the phone.

"Simple: Heere at the Wall, Wall Street and Broadway. You're not the only one who fills their head with History facts." Ivy said, smiling.

"I guess it was a good idea to let you come along." Ben said with a laugh.

Ivy's smile faded when she caught Abigail's gaze. She was supposed to tell him something else.

"Ben, there is a catch," Ivy said suddenly, her tone becoming serious, "Ian thinks he can have the treasure. We had to tell him that. It was the only way we could go through with the plan."

Riley was watching the computer screen carefully. The tiny red dot that marked the car Ben was traveling in had arrived at their location.

"He's here." Riley announced to them.

Ivy quickly said good-bye and then hung up the phone. She went to stand beside Abigail by Riley's computer.

Ben's POV:

"Ben!" Ian said when he met him, "You alright? Now broken bones? A jump like that could kill a man."

"Nah, it was cool," Ben said casually, "You should try it sometime."

Ian laughed. He then placed two objects on the hood of the car, "The Declaration of Independence, and the meerschaum pipe. All yours."

Ben looked at Ian suspiciously, "That's it?"

Ian nodded, looking at the objects, "That's it."

Then he looked back at Ben, more serious, "I knew you'd keep your promise. Now, where is it? Where's my treasure?"

"It's right here," Ben replied, "The map said, 'Heere at the Wall," spelled with two E's. Wall Street follows the path of an actual wall…"

Ben proceeded to explain the clue to Ian.

"So, Heere at the Wall," Ben finished, "Wall Street, Broadway."

Ian looked at him with a confused face.

Ben grabbed the Declaration and the pipe. He then turned away, speaking with a British accent, "Cheerio."

"Just a moment, Ben." Ian said, stopping him.

"Ian, if you break our deal, the FBI will only be a few minutes behind you. You might get away, you might not."

"Is that all the map said?" Ian asked.

Ben nodded, "Every word."

"Oh, Ben," Ian said, obviously not believing him, "The key to running a convincing bluff…once in a while, you've got to be holding all the cards."

Ian's eyes looked over Ben's shoulder. Ben turned around and saw that one of Ian's comrades was holding his father, Patrick Gates, in custody. The poor man's hands were duct taped, and he was in the backseat of a car.

"Dad…" Ben said slowly.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me?" Ian asked, knowing that he was in charge now.

Ben gave in, "Trinity Church. We have to go inside Trinity Church."

Ian seemed pleased, "Good, excellent. Well, why don't you ask Dr. Chase, Riley and my niece to join us? I'm sure they're around here somewhere."

Ah, cliffhanger! How mean is that? Sorry, I have to go to bed. School in the morning. Yuck. I hate Mondays so much. Hope you liked that one.


	9. Chapter 9: Beneath Trinity Church

I left you guys with a cliffhanger, huh? Kind of mean, but hey, it keeps 'em guessing. The Riley/Ivyness is seeming to be getting higher and higher with every quiz. Maybe, just maybe, I'll add some more. Oh, and I'm thinking about making a sequel…

Ben, Patrick Gates, and Ian, along with his comrades, were walking inside Trinity Church. Ben jeered close to his father and whispered, "Are you alright?"

Patrick frowned, "What do you think? I'm a _hostage_!"

"Sit down." Ian commanded them.

"Let him go, Ian," Ben said angrily, "Or you can just figure out the clues yourself. Good luck."

"Ben," Ian said, a mocking ton in his voice, "I don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation."

With those words being said, Phil brought in Abigail, Riley and Ivy. He forced them to sit down in one of the pews.

"No, wait," Ian said to him, "Bring Liberty to me. Just to be sure she won't try anything."

Phil went to grab Ivy, but she stood up immediately, shooting the man a glare.

"Don't…I can fxxxing do it myself." Ivy spat, walking heatedly up to Ian.

"There you are," Ian said once he reached her, "Now no funny business, or you're going straight home. You understand?"

"Just shut up," Ivy said sourly, "And let's get this over with."

"Good girl." Ian said to her, which only made Ivy grimace.

Ben gave Ivy a look as if to say, 'We'll just have to listen to him for now.' Ivy understood.

"Now let's take a look at that map."

Riley played with his thumbs nervously. He couldn't do anything to help Ivy, though he knew how much she hated her uncle.

Abigail wondered what Ben was doing. She felt so helpless, like Riley did. Abby felt like it was her fault for Ian taking charge once again.

Ivy had her arms crossed and she leaned against the pew. How she hated this. For the first time, Ivy had felt like she was doing something special on her own, and now Ian had to come in and ruin it. She felt bad for Ben, because she knew that he had wanted to find this treasure terribly. She felt bad for Abigail, who had been pulled into this, not jumped in, like she did. And, no matter how much she tried to deny it, Ivy felt bad for Riley, who was by far one of the nicest geeks she had ever met.

While all this thinking had been going on, Ben and Ian had deciphered the clue.

"…not inside. Beneath. We have to go beneath the church." Ben finished.

Everyone stood up. Abigail ran directly to Ben.

"I'm so sorry, Ben," Abigail said.

"None of this is your fault." Ben replied.

Viktor pushed Abigail forward before she could respond, and Ben followed, though he probably wanted to slug him.

Riley went to go talk to Ivy, to ask if she was ok, when Ian grabbed her wrist…hard.

"You are coming with me." Ian said to her sharply.

"Let go of me! You're cutting off the blood circulation to my hand!" Ivy groaned, trying to pull away. But Ian's strong, firm grip was no match for her.

Riley, in spite of himself, went up to them.

"Um, Ian," Riley said, his eyes darting back and forth, "Maybe it wouldn't hurt to let her go. She's not going to do anything."

Ian glared at Riley, who quickly walked away, blushing nervously. But remarkably, Ian let go of Ivy's wrist. She took it with her other hand, cradling it.

"Stay close," Ian warned, "Or consider yourself bound for New Jersey."

Ian passed ahead of everyone else, so he was leading. He passed Riley, and Ivy knocked into him.

"Thanks." She whispered quickly.

Riley gave her a weak smile and started to say something, but Shaw pushed Riley ahead. Riley stumbled, but kept going. Shaw then looked at Ivy suspiciously. She shot him a nasty glare, and followed Ian reluctantly.

Everyone went to a small room that smelled like dead rats and was covered in dust. Trinity Church was, after all, quite old, and it was possible that it could contain things like that.

"What are we looking for?" Ivy asked Ben.

"Parkington Lane," Ben replied, "It could be something along the lines of-"

Suddenly, Riley perked up from the other side of the room, "Parkington…Parkington Lane! Hey, I found it! Err, him!"

Ian shifted in front of Ivy and got to Riley first. She pushed through Viktor and Shaw, not caring.

Riley had found a stone plaque, reading, "Parkington Lane." Below was the written date in which the person lived. It appeared that it wasn't a place after all.

Ben started to say, "Well how are we going to…AAGHHH!"

Viktor came tearing through with a big club-like object, slamming on the 'gravestone'. He broke the wall down, and it revealed a coffin.

Carefully, Ian, Ben, Viktor and Phil lifted the coffin out and brought it into full view. They were about to set it on the floor when the bottom fell out, and with it, the decayed corpse of Parkington Lane. The entire group jumped back and grimaced.

"Careful no one steps in him." Viktor said.

But now it wasn't the dead body they cared about. Abigail and Ivy leaned forward, looking down the hole where they had taken the casket out. It was a long, dark tunnel.

"Ok," Riley said, peering down it like everyone else, "Who wants to go down the creepy tunnel inside the tomb first?"

"You say that like it's an easy thing." Ivy retorted.

"Well, yeah," Riley replied smartly, "If going into the unknown and the possibility of not coming out doesn't bother you."

Ivy clicked her tongue. Now his comebacks were getting even better.

"All right, McGregor, Viktor," Ian said to his comrades, "You stay here. And if anyone should come out without me, well…use your imagination."

Ben and Patrick exchanged worried glances, as did Abigail and Riley. Ivy swallowed hard.

"Shall we?" Ian said.

Ben stepped inside first, followed by Ian, then Shaw, and so forth. The tunnel was quite small, and so they all had to crouch down. Ivy was in front of Riley, and he wasn't particularly happy about her butt being almost in his face.

"Could you possibly move the line a little faster? You're blocking my vision." Riley complained from behind her.

"Riley, for once, just shut up." Ivy snapped.

"Ok then." Riley said quietly.

Eventually, they made their way out of the tunnel. Ben had found torches, which he passed around to everybody. Ian used his lighter to help light the torches and they continued on.

The catacombs beneath the church were dark, dusty and bad smelling. Ivy got stuck behind Abigail because Shaw pushed her aside. Ben waited for Riley to come, and he nodded to his friend, assuring him it would be all right. When Abigail came, he did something completely different.

"Come here…"

Ben grabbed Abigail and kissed her. She smiled at him afterwards.

Ivy saw the whole thing. She grimaced, "Eww…get a room."

Ben smirked at Ivy and laughed a bit before turning away to follow Abigail.

"Why does that never happen to me?" Phil asked himself.

The group was soon led to a dark room. Ben smartly found a wooden 'chandelier' and lit it. This revealed a large room that was full of strange contraptions. Stairs and wooden moving mechanisms were all over the place. None of them looked recent…or safe.

"How do a bunch of guys with hand tools build all this?" Phil said aloud.

"The same way they built the Great Pyramids…and the Great Wall of China." Ben replied.

"Yeah," Riley said, "The aliens helped them."

Ivy bit her lip to keep from laughing, "And by the smell of this place, the zombies, too."

"Right, let's go. What are we waiting for?" Ian said impatiently.

"I'm not going down that thing," Patrick Gates spoke up, "200 years of termite damage and rot…"

"Dad, do what he says." Ben said desperately.

Ian looked at Ben, and then at Ivy, just to be sure she was still nearby. Bt Ivy wasn't returning his glance. Instead, she was staring down the shaft, and breathing rather uncomfortably. Her eyes were growing wider and wider.

"We haven't got all day." Ian said to her angrily.

Ivy continued to stare down the shaft in fear.

Riley understood, "You're afraid of heights."

Ivy shot him a fierce look, "No I'm not."

Riley backed away, "Sure, sure. If you say so."

Ivy then put her foot forward. There was no way she was letting Riley Poole prove her wrong.

They continued going down the shaft. Each person went down slowly, and very cautiously. One wrong move could send one of them falling into the darkness below.

"Watch your step," Ben's father said, "We're right under the Trinity graveyard. That's probably why no one ever found this."

The room began to shake, and dust fell from the ceiling. A rumbling sound echoed throughout the shaft.

"What was that?" Riley asked.

Ian replied, "The subway."

Just then, Shaw stepped on an uneasy piece of wood, and it broke. He fell right through.

"Shaw!" Ian shouted in surprise.

Abigail let out a scream as they watched the man fall into the darkness below. Everyone saw him disappear into the dark pit in disbelief.

A huge bang occurred. Then the platform they were standing on began to cave in. Riley grabbed Ivy and threw her across to the nearest platform before jumping himself. Ian and Phil jumped onto the elevator.

Ivy had landed on her side, and it hurt worse than ever. She groaned in pain and looked over at the platform. Ben was dangling off it, the Declaration closeby.

"Ben!" Abigail screamed, "Grab my hand!"

Ben grasped Abigail's hand and she pulled him up. Meanwhile, Patrick threw his torch to Phil.

"Abigail!" Ben called to her, "Get on the elevator!"

Patrick Gates, Riley and Ivy jumped onto the elevator that Ian and Phil were on. Now it was just Ben and Abigail on the lone platform.

"Here!" Riley said, his outstretched arm trying to reach his friend.

The rope and wood on the platform snapped. Abigail fell with it. Ben got her hand just in time. Now she was hanging off the edge.

"Get down there, get down there!" Patrick urged Ian. He wanted to get the elevator lower so they could reach Ben and Abigail in time.

"The Declaration!" Abigail whispered sharply as the document neared the edge.

Ben's mind was churning. What could he do? Then, like lightning, it hit him.

"Do you trust me?" He asked Abigail.

She replied instantly, "Yes."

Ben waited until the swinging platform they were on was over another one. He let go of her hand. Just as he had planned, Abigail landed safely on it.

He looked down and made sure she was ok. Then he fell and was soon hanging off the edge, just as Abigail had been before.

"Hang on!" She called to him.

Hanging on was difficult. Ben now had the Declaration, but it seemed there was no way out. He searched for a another platform or something, but there was nothing around. The nail in the piece of wood he was gripping was coming out, and it seemed there was nothing he could do…

"Son!"

A rope fell to Ben. He looked up to see the faces of his father and Phil, both holding the rope. He grasped it, and swung over to Abigail.

Ivy and Riley, in the meantime, were so terrified they were clinging to each other. Ivy's face was buried in his shoulder, and Riley's around were wrapped warmly around her. Patrick Gates and Phil turned to see them.

"Not dating, huh?" Phil said suddenly.

Ivy opened her eyes, as did Riley.

"Aggh!"

"Not happening!"

They both let go and pretended nothing had happened. A romance between them was the last thing Nerdpants and Avril Lavigne needed. They proceeded, Ian, Phil and Ben's father following.

"I'm sorry," Ben said to Abigail, "I'm sorry I dropped you. But I had to save the Declaration and-"

"No, no, don't be," Abigail assured him, "I would have done the same thing."

Ben looked at her in incredulity, "_Really_?"

Abigail smiled at him and nodded. Riley came in at exactly the right moment.

"I would've dropped you both," He said nonchalantly, "_Freaks_."

And that is the end of Part 9. Sorry it was so freaking long, but I had to write out that stuff or else the story wouldn't make sense. Yes, I put some little 'moments' for Riley and Ivy, so I hoped that pleased you. As for the sequel idea, there will only be one if my readers (that would be you) wanted one. So if you do…speak up!


	10. Chapter 10: The Treasure

Good day, mates. I'm thinking this may be the last one. If not, there will only be one more. Then…we'll see from there.

Ian, Phil and Patrick Gates arrived at the platform. They were on the elevator.

"Get on." Ian commanded.

"Ian…" Ben said slowly, "It's not worth it."

"Do you imagine any one of your lives is more valuable to me than Shaw's?" Ian said coldly, "We go on."

"This guy's insane…" Ivy muttered.

"Shut up, Liberty, and stay with me." Ian snarled, grabbing her wrist and hurting her again. Riley grinded his teeth angrily at this, but knew it was best to say nothing.

They carefully lowered the platform little by little.

"I guess…this is where it all leads." Ben's father said softly.

By now they had reached another platform, but this one was different. It seemed to be leading somewhere, not just sitting in the middle of nowhere.

Once they were perfectly level, Ben tied one of the ropes around a nearby post. He took a torch from Abigail and stepped forward.

"Ok," Ben said bravely, "Let's go."

The group followed closely behind Ben. He cleared a doorway of cobwebs, and then lit two torches, one on each side of the doorway. The new light revealed a circular room that had strange markings on the walls. In the far corner, Patrick spotted a lantern.

"What is this?" Riley asked.

Phil interrupted impatiently, "So where's the treasure?"

"Well?" Ian inquired.

Ben stared at the floor and shook his head, and Riley immediately got it.

"This is it?" Riley said in shock, "We came all this way for a dead end?"

Ben wiped his brow and sighed, "Yes."

Ivy bit her lip. Abigail said nothing.

"But there's…there's gotta be something more…" Riley started to say.

"Riley, there's nothing more." Ben said tiredly.

"Another clue, or-"

"No, there are no more clues!" Ben yelled at his friend, "That's it, ok? It's over! End of the road! The treasure's gone. Taken. Moved somewhere else."

Ian suddenly spoke up, "You're not playing games with me, are you Ben?"

Ben looked at Ian, "What?"

"You know where it is." Ian said evilly.

"No." Ben replied.

Ian kept his gaze, then decided to give up, "Ok, go."

Ian and his comrades started towards the elevator.

"Hey, wait a minute…" Ben started after him, Riley and Abigail close behind.

"Wait, Ian!"

"Wait, wait, wait!"

"You can't just leave us here!"

Ian stepped onto the elevator.

Riley started to say, "Ian, maybe we could work this out if you just-"

Ian took out a loaded gun and pointed it at him, "Don't speak again."

Riley gulped, "Ok."

"The clue," Ian said, "Where's the treasure?"

Ben was silent. Ivy and Riley stared at the gun nervously.

Patrick gates stepped forward, "The lantern."

"Dad…" Ben begged him.

Patrick looked at his son.

"Don't." Ben said softly.

"It's part of freemason teachings," Patrick explained, "In King Solomon's temple there was a winding staircase. It signified the journey that had to be made to find the light of truth. The lantern is the clue."

"And what does it mean?" Ian asked.

"Boston. It's Boston." Ben said, giving up completely.

"Paul Revere…" Ivy mumbled.

Riley looked at her and whispered, "Huh?"

"The Old North Church in Boston where Thomas Newton held a lantern in the steeple. To signal Paul Revere that the British were coming, one if by land, two if by sea. ONE lantern. Under the winding staircase of the steeple, that's where we have to look." Patrick finished.

"Thank you." Ian replied, though he didn't sound grateful. He gave Phil a signal.

"Hey, you have to take us with you." Patrick said urgently.

"Why?" Ian said calmly, "So you can escape in Boston? Besides, with you out of the picture there's less baggage to carry. And if, by chance, you lied to me, I'll know right where to find you."

The elevator started to move, but Ian stopped Phil for a moment. He turned back to see Ivy standing there, shaking.

"Well?" He said expectantly at Ivy, "Get on."

Ivy's eyes glanced from Ian's urgent face to Ben, Abigail and Riley's terrified ones. Of course, like everyone else, Ivy wanted to get out of this place, but something held her back. An invisible force that made her keep her feet planted firmly on the ground.

"No."

Everyone gaped in surprise.

"Liberty," Ian said, stepping toward her, "There is no other way out of here. You could play the fool and die down here. Or you could do the right thing and be lifted out. Make your choice."

"I think the choice is obvious," Ivy said, glaring at him evilly, "I'd rather die down here with people who actually care about me instead of getting out with someone who ruined my life."

Ian scoffed, "Suit yourself."

Ivy stood there and watched the platform rise until it was out of reach. Then she turned to Ben, Abigail and Riley, all of which were surprised at her choice.

"You could've got out!" Riley said, his voice a cross between surprise and anger.

"I could have," Ivy said, nodding, "I could have got out and then Ian would've taken me back to my parents' house. Where I'd have to face my mother and my siblings. Besides, I can't just leave you guys down here. It's just…not right."

Riley sighed, "We're all gonna die."

"It's going to be ok, Riley," Ben said comfortingly, "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"Ok boys, what's going on?"Abigail asked them, "The British came by sea. There should have been two lanterns."

"Ian needed another clue, so we gave it to him." Ben's father stated.

"It was a fake," Abigail said, "A fake clue. Genius, I must say."

Ben, meanwhile, was carefully examining the wall, "The All-Seeing Eye…through the All-Seeing Eye…"

"That means…by the time Ian figures it out and comes back here, we'll still be trapped, and he'll shoot us then." Riley said dramatically.

"Nerdpants, take a chill pill. Ben's gonna figure something out, he always does." Ivy said, crossing her arms.

"Will you stop calling me that?" Riley shot back at her, "I don't think you get the gravity of this situation! We could starve to death done here. Maybe, just maybe, we'll have to be cannibals and-"

"Eww, no!" Ivy said, covering his mouth.

Riley pulled her hand away from him, "Either way we're gonna die."

Ben looked back at them, "No one is going to die. There's another way out."

"I told you so." Ivy said in a girlish mocking tone.

"Shut up," Riley sneered, then went to Ben, "Where?"

"Through the treasure room." Ben replied.

He pushed a stone button on the wall and the wall moved. Together Patrick and Ben pushed what was now a door to the side so they could enter the newly discovered room.

"Wow." Abigail said.

"Yeah." Ivy whispered.

But it wasn't what they thought it was. A room that was supposed to have been full of treasures of every kind…was empty. Only a few pots and spider webs were left behind.

"Looks like…someone got here first." Riley said sadly.

"I'm sorry, Ben." Abigail said sadly.

"It's gone," Ben whispered in disbelief, "It may have even been gone before Charles Carroll even told the story to Thomas Gates."

"Listen, Ben," his father began, "It doesn't matter. You were right all along. This room is real. And that means the treasure is real. We're in the company of some of the most brilliant minds in history, because _you_ figured out what they left behind. You understood the meaning of it. You did it, Ben. For all of us. And I've…I've never been so happy to be proven wrong."

Ben walked away, completely overwhelmed with what his father had just said.

"I just…" Ben said, "I just really thought I would find the treasure."

"Ok, then we keep looking for it." Patrick proposed.

"I'm in." Abigail said, stepping forward.

"You can sure as hxxx count me in, too," Ivy said.

"Ok." Ben said, his spirits slowly lifting.

"Not to be Johnny Raincloud here, but that's not gonna happen," Riley spoke up, "Because as far as I can see we're still trapped down here."

"Good 'ol Nerdpants," Ivy said happily, "Always looks at the bright side of things. That' s a pure optimist we have there."

Riley ignored her, "Now Ben, where's this other way out?"

"Well that's it. It doesn't make sense," Ben replied, "The first thing the builders would have done is built a secondary shaft back out for air and in case of cave-ins."

Ben walked over to the wall. A group of strange markings, plaques and holes where on the wall, spread out and covered in symbols. Riley, Ivy, Abigail and Patrick gathered around.

Ben was drawn to one bronze plaque in particular. It was circular, like the others, but it had an engraving of a ship in the middle.

"Could it really be that simple?" He asked himself, reaching into his pocket.

They watched nervously as Ben pulled out the pipe that he and Riley and found earlier in _The Charlotte. _He turned it over in his hands before taking to the engraving.

"The secret lies with Charlotte." Ben whispered.

Ben placed the ship in the engraving. Perfect fit. Then he took the stick part that had been attached to the pipe, and put it in the hole beside it. In amazement, the five treasure-protectors watched as Ben turned the bronze circle all the way around. Then he pushed it in.

A strong gust of wind startled them. They turned to look at the other side of the room, where the wall had started to move. Eagerly, the group went into the room.

Ben was speechless. His father was the same. Abigail's eyes grew wide. Riley's mouth hung open. Ivy said, "Holy sxxx," under her breath. All around them was the treasure.

Slowly, they went to explore it. Abigail found a collection of old scrolls. She examined them.

"From the library at Alexandria…" Abby said breathlessly, "How is this possible?"

Patrick Gates found an old medallion. He lightly cleared the dust from it.

"The Unfinished Pyramid…" He said quietly.

Ivy and Riley had begun looking at the Egyptian items. Riley spotted one in particular.

"It's a big, bluish green man with a strange goatee…" Riley said inaudibly, "I'm guessing that's significant."

Ivy stood back and gave Riley the strangest look while he hugged the statue.

"Puh. Nerds." Ivy said, shaking her head and walking away.

Ben had ventured off further. Hearing the sound of fire lighting, Patrick, Ivy, Abigail and Riley looked just in time to see something extraordinary. Ben had lit a large, long fiery line, and as it stretched further and further, more treasure was revealed. Before long, they were standing in what looked like a room big enough to cover an entire football field. And it was filled with the Gates Treasure.

Abigail heard someone sniffing. She looked over to see Riley.

"Riley, are you crying?"

Riley was looking at the other side of the golden room.

"Look," he said, filled with emotion, "Stairs."

The story ends there. Just kidding, but it looks like I'll have to post a #11. Nothing wrong with that, huh? Still working on sequel names…


	11. Chapter 11: The End: or is it?

Wow! I haven't written in ages! Sorry this took so long. I got this massive Geography project, two unit tests, a few lines to memorize for this show, and geez…I'll stop babbling and give you patient readers the final chapter of "She's a Rebel and a Historian."

"Those stairs don't look very stable," Patrick Gates said slowly, "I doubt they'll support our weight."

"Well, who's the smallest?" Abigail asked, "One of us could go up and get help."

Everyone looked at Ivy. She sighed and headed towards the stairs.

"Have I gotta do everything around here?" Ivy muttered.

Meanwhile, one of the custodians in the church had found poor Parkington Lane as he lay there on the floor, a pile of dust. The man was holding a flashlight over the bones when suddenly, he heard a noise. Something was banging on the stone wall. Startled, the custodian bravely but shakily held his flashlight near the place where the noise was coming from, and then the wall broke.

Out tumbled Ivy, who clumsily landed on her arm.

"Phhhtt!" Ivy spat, dust going everywhere, "Why the fxxx do they make those things anyway?"

She glanced over at the frightened custodian.

"Oh, yeah," Ivy stood up, "Do you have a cell phone I could use?"

Benjamin Gates waited patiently inside the church, right at the alter. Abigail, Riley and Ivy sat down in one of the pews, guarded by FBI agents. They waited in silence as Agent Peter Sadusky approached them.

Ben stood up and handed him the Declaration of Independence.

"You do know that you've just handed me your biggest bargaining chip?" Agent Sadusky said, his eyebrow slightly arched.

"The Declaration of Independence is not a bargaining chip," Ben stated simply, "Not to me."

"I see," Agent Sadusky nodded as they both sat down, "So what's your offer?"

"I don't know…" Ben replied, "Say about…ten billion dollars?"

"Holy sxxx!" Ivy said under her breath.

Sadusky asked, "I take it you found the treasure?"

"It's about five stories beneath us." Ben nodded.

Sadusky smiled, "You know, the Templers and the Free Masons felt that the treasure was too great for any one man to have, not even a king. That's why they went to such lengths to keep it hidden."

Ben saw that the agent was wearing a ring, with the symbol of the All-Seeing Eye engraved into it. He understood.

"That's right," Ben replied, "The Founding Fathers felt the same way about government. I figure their solution will work for the treasure too."

"Give it to the people." Sadusky said.

"Divide it amongst the Smithsonian, the Louvre, the Cairo museum…I mean, there's thousands of years of world history down there, and it belongs to the world." Ben said.

"You really don't understand the concept of a bargaining chip." Sadusky said, laughing, and Ben did the same. Then he grew serious.

"Ok, here's what I want," Ben said sincerely, "Dr. Chase gets off completely clean. Not even a little Post-it on her service record."

Abigail smiled. She was safe.

"I want the credit for the find," Ben continued, "To go to the entire Gates family…with the assistance of Mr. Riley Poole."

Riley smiled and nodded. His best friend was letting him off, too.

"As for Miss Ivy Fairview," Ben said, "I want her to get off clean as well. And please, make sure she still gets to keep her job working the gift shop at the National Archives."

Ivy even broke into a smile. Not only was she free, but also she still had her job.

"What about you?" Sadusky asked.

"I would really love not to go to prison." Ben said desperately.

"Somebody's gotta go to prison, Ben." Sadusky told him.

"Well, if you've got a helicopter," Ben said slowly, "I think I can help with that."

In Boston, Ian Howe and his group were outside the Old North Church, getting ready to break into the church and find the treasure. Or so they thought.

Within seconds, the police arrived and arrested them all. Ian was pushed up against the police vehicle as they put him in handcuffs, and he saw the figures of Ben Gates and Ivy looking back at him. Ben nodded in approval, and Ivy just gave him a dark, cold stare. They stood there and watched the car drive away with Ian Howe in custody, and for the first time, Ivy felt that the weight she had always carried had been lifted...slightly.

"Yeah, you got it chief, okay, bye," Riley Poole closed his cell phone, "They want us in Cairo next week for the opening of the exhibit. They're sending a private jet."

"That's fun." Abigail said with a smile.

"Yeah, big whoop," Riley said flatly, "We could've had a whole fleet of private jets. Ten percent, Ben. They offered ya ten percent and you turned it down."

"Riley, we've been over this," Ben argued, "It was too much. I couldn't accept it."

"I still have this, splinter that's been festering for three months…" Riley said, trying to annoy his friend even more. Ben just laughed.

"Ok, I'll tell you what," Ben told him, "The next time we find a treasure that redefines history for all mankind, you make the call on the finder's fee."

"That's not as funny," Riley said, pausing, "What do you care? You got the girl."

"It's true." Abigail said, and she and Ben leaned in for a kiss.

"Yeah, rub it in," Riley said, "While I settle for stinkin' one percent."

Riley climbed into his new, red shiny sports car. He loved it.

"Sorry for your suffering, Riley." Ben said sarcastically.

"Yeah, for the record, Ben," Riley added, "Gotta love the house."

They took the time to glance at the beautiful, classic brick mansion. Ivy beamed at it. The place was old, but it was like a comfortable, country home.

"Now that you mention it," Ben said, going into historian mode, "I actually chose this house because in 1812, Charles Carroll met-"

"Yeah someone who did something in history and had fun," Riley said, not really caring, "You could've had a bigger house."

"That reminds me," Abigail said, "Ivy's got her show on today. You know, that contest?"

Silence.

"About winning the record deal?" Abby said, trying to get them to clue in.

"Oh, yes, right," Ben said, "Make sure to be there at about…1:00."

"What?" Riley objected, "Oh come on…do we have to go listen to her screaming guitar?"

"It's the least we could do." Abby said politely.

"Plus we've gotta pick up our new furniture," Ben said, "And those books for the library."

"Alright, fine," Riley said, "I'll go. But don't go thinking anything, ok?"

Ivy readied her guitar as the announcer said her name over the microphone, "And now, Ivy Fairview, singing her song, entitled "Story of My life."

Taking a deep breath, Ivy began to play her guitar and she stepped up to the microphone. The people in the audience seemed interested. Apparently she was the only solo girl performer.

"_Seems just like yesterday_

_I had a family_

_Now it's all down the drain_

_It's ancient history_

_Don't try to help me out_

_I'll bring myself to life_

_You can stand there watching me_

_But just wait and see…_

_Here I am, once again_

_I'm by myself and sinking to ground_

_Screaming loud_

_Never wanted this_

_But I won't cry, cause deep inside_

_I've got a heart of stone_

_Now you know_

_The story of my life_

_I tried to free myself_

_From all these heavy chains_

_But all's left in the end_

_Is all this pain_

_You watch me falling down_

_Down to the underworld_

_But something's happening_

_You're falling down with me…_

_Here I am, once again_

_I'm by myself and sinking to the ground_

_Screaming loud_

_Never wanted this_

_But I won't cry, cause deep inside_

_I've got a heart of stone_

_Now you know_

_The story of my life_

_What's happening?_

_I just can't scream_

_You've got my heart and song_

_Please tell me_

_Why I can see_

_No more walking in the dark…_

_I'M ALIVE……you brought me to life_

_Here I am, once again_

_I'm here with you and living in this place_

_I see your face_

_You make me want to live_

_Still won't cry, cause deep inside_

_I'm no longer alone_

_Now you know_

_The story of our lives_

_The story of our lives…"_

The crowd cheered. They loved it. Ivy felt relieved and excited at the same time. Then, just as she was about to step off, she saw three familiar faces. It was Ben, Abigail and Riley.

"You came!" Ivy exclaimed when she got to them.

"It turns out the exhibit was held up until tomorrow," Ben said, "And was that really you? Did you write that song?"

Ivy nodded, "Yeah, I wrote it a few days ago…"

Abigail and Ben were smiling. Riley was nervously grinning and he kept looking at the floor.

"Well I thought it was fantastic," Abby said, "Come on, let's go out and celebrate."

"They've got to announce the winners first," Ivy said, "Then we'll go. Whether I win or not, I'm still so psyched I got to do it up there!"

Riley muttered something along the lines of, "Good song."

Within a few minutes, the winners were announced. Ivy unfortunately wasn't one of them.

"The rest of the bands were crap anyway," Riley said as they left, "I heard a few of them when we came in. They sucked."

"Riley, how would you know? You don't even like this kind of music." Abby said, laughing.

"Well I did like Ivy's song." Riley admitted, his cheeks flushing pink.

Ivy was about to respond when she heard someone calling her name. She turned around and couldn't believe what she saw. She quickly told the other she would catch up.

Billie Joe Armstrong, the lead singer of Green Day and her crush for as long as she could remember, was walking up to her. And saying her name. This must be a dream.

"Hey, are you that girl that just performed?" He asked, reaching her.

"Yeah, that was me." Ivy replied, her heart beating rapidly in her chest.

"I'm Billie Joe. I'm in Green Day, if you've heard of us. By the way, your song was fxxxing awesome. I was wondering if you'd want to record a song together…sometime."

Ivy's face lit up. This was too good to be true. But then something happened she never imagined. She saw Riley by the door, looking extremely hurt. He turned and went outside with Ben and Abigail.

"So you want to?" Billie Joe was still asking.

Ivy looked back at him. Never did she think this would happen. In her dreams she was supposed to say yes and then they'd spend the rest of their lives together. But this time, when it was really happening, she wanted something else.

"Recording a song sounds cool," Ivy agreed, "But I gotta go, I'll talk to you later."

"I'll need your phone number." Billie Joe said.

"Yeah, yeah, ok." Ivy hastily scribbled her number on his hand with the pen she had in her pocket.

Billie Joe was left with a surprised look on his face as he watched Ivy run out the door.

"Sorry I was late!" Ivy said, panting as she reached them. Riley looked back once, but then went to staring at the ground as they kept walking.

"So what do you think of all the publicity on the treasure?" Ivy asked Riley.

"I don't really care about that," Riley replied as they walked down the sidewalk, "I'm just glad I got the sports car I've always wanted."

Ivy smiled and shook her head, "Typical Riley."

He cocked his head, "Hey, you said it was cool."

"The restaurant's right here." Ben said as they reached a small building on the left.

"We'll meet you inside in a sec." Ivy said. Riley looked confused.

Abby cast Ivy a smile, "All right."

Ben opened the door for Abby and they went inside.

Riley was looking a cross between confused and nervous.

"Did you really like my song?" Ivy asked.

He shrugged, "Yeah."

"Well I wrote it about you." Ivy blurted out.

Riley's eyes grew wide, "Y-you did?"

Ivy nodded, "Yep. A few minutes ago the lead singer of Green Day-"

"I know, asked you out. You guys will have a great time. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm hungry."

Riley went to open the door, but Ivy stepped in front of him.

"Even if he did I would've said no." Ivy said, smiling a bit.

"Yeah, whatever." Riley said, trying to get to the door. Ivy kept moving so that she was in his way, "Will you please get out of my-"

Ivy leaned forward fast, took his face in her hands and pressed her lips against his. Riley took this as a surprise and pulled away, but then when Ivy worked her tongue into his mouth, he came to enjoy it. They stood there for a few minutes kissing. When they broke away, Riley looked at her with the widest eyes she'd ever seen.

"Wow…" Riley said slowly.

Ivy smiled, "You wanna go get some food now?"

Riley nodded, clearing his throat nervously, "Sure…I thought you didn't like geeks."

Ivy glanced back at him, cocking her eyebrow at him, "For you I make an exception."

Riley smiled.

"Just…if you tell anyone, I'll kick your ass." Ivy said, becoming her old self again.

"Yeah, I kinda figured that." Riley said, and they both entered the restaurant.

TO BE CONTINUED… 

So…what did you guys think? You like? Kinda funny how Ivy met Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong (eat your heart out, girls), hehe, just a little cameo for him there.

And yeah, the kiss finally happened. But does that mean they're gonna hook up? I won't tell, you'll just have to wait for the next installment.


End file.
